Being an organized student can be challenging. With school work, extracurricular activities, and responsibilities at home to take care of, there’s often a lot to juggle. Learning how to stay organized can be a lifesaver! The following organization tips for school are intended to help you use your time more efficiently and to help you feel more successful:

Avoid clutter. We may be living in a near-paperless society, but as a student, you surely get your fair share of paper everyday. To keep yourself from drowning in paperwork, get rid of it as soon as you possibly can. Every night, go through your backpack and recycle the papers you don’t need. If you don’t need it now, but may use it in the future, file it away. Then every couple of weeks, review the filed papers and see if you can recycle anything else. As you work to stay organized in school, you’ll find it useful to avoid clutter in your backpack, desk, locker, and workspace at home.

Make a to-do list. Every morning, write down the things that you need to accomplish that day. In the moments when you feel overwhelmed or unsure of your next step, look at the list. This will help you to focus on the things that really need to get done and learn to manage your time. As you get comfortable with the daily list, try creating separate to-do lists for the week and the month.

Reward yourself. Creating a system for organization isn’t easy. In fact, it requires a lot of commitment and diligence. If you’ve been successful at using your planner for a week or emptying your backpack at the end of each day, then you deserve a reward! Think of something fun and motivating that you can treat yourself to. It doesn’t have to be extravagant, but it should be something you’ll really look forward to earning.

Evaluate your systems. As you try new organization tips for school, take time to really think about whether or not they work for you. Being organized isn’t a one-size-fits-all venture; you’re likely to prefer different systems from

your peers. If you’ve tried color-coding your calendar and it just feels ridiculous, then don’t do it. No matter how many times the organizing experts of the world recommend something, the most important issue is whether or not it works for you. Remember: organizational systems should help you, not frustrate you!

Be flexible. A lot of people think that being organized means having every moment planned ahead of time. But life doesn’t work like that. Maybe your coach calls for an unexpected practice or an assignment needs some extra work you hadn’t planned on. As you work to organize your studies and your free time, leave room for life to happen in your planning. Give yourself some extra time to write that essay or a little longer in the morning to get ready for school. This extra time can give you the flexibility to respond to life when it needs you.

Ask for help. If you are feeling lost in your academics, then even the best organization system won’t help. Instead, make the time to find a tutor to help you catch up on your schoolwork. The right tutor will help you academically and can even offer some personalized organization tips for school. A tutor can also help if you want to get ahead or learn more about a subject than is offered in your school.